


Pains of the Past

by Sand_wolf579



Series: Hurt and Healing [1]
Category: Gargoyles (Cartoon)
Genre: Angst, Family Feels, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Minor Injuries
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:20:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,004
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25122313
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sand_wolf579/pseuds/Sand_wolf579
Summary: While trying to stop a mugging, Brooklyn got hurt.  It was nights like this that made him wonder why he helped humans at all.
Relationships: Brooklyn & Hudson (Gargoyles), Brooklyn & Lexington (Gargoyles)
Series: Hurt and Healing [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1819813
Comments: 1
Kudos: 12





	Pains of the Past

Brooklyn yawned and stretched slightly as he looked out over the city. Lex grinned slightly as he looked at Brooklyn. "You feeling as bored as I am?"

"Unfortunately, yes," Brooklyn sighed and crouched down. He rested his head in his hand. "I know I'm going to regret saying this, but I kinda wish that something interesting would happen," He didn't want the clock tower to be invaded, or for one of them to be captured or attacked, he just wanted something to do.

"We can go to the movies," Lex suggested, grimacing even as he said it. Brooklyn gave him a disbelieving look.

"And interrupt Broadway's big date? No thanks," Brooklyn said. He tried not to show how bitter and jealous he was that Angela had chosen Broadway, but the sympathetic look that Lex gave him told him that he wasn't nearly as good at hiding his feelings as he hoped.

"Well, we can always go patrol the city," Lex said. "There's always trouble here. I'm sure we can find something fun to do,"

Brooklyn didn't exactly feel like going out, but he definitely didn't want to stay in the tower all night.. "Yeah, sure," He stretched his wings and looked towards the other end of the room where Hudson was sitting and watching television, like he usually was. "Hey, Hudson, me and Lex are going out for a bit,"

"Ay, alrigh', lads," Hudson gave them a little wave. "Be back before dawn,"

"No problem," Lex said as he hoped towards the clock's door. It wasn't even midnight yet, so they had plenty of time before the sun rose, but they didn't blame Hudson for reminding them. They all got a little worried when one of them was out a little too close to dawn. They may all be their own gargoyle, but they were a clan, and the tower was their home. There were very few reasons for them to stay out for too long, and most of them weren't good. Maybe they shouldn't cling so much to each other, but they didn't have anybody else. They were allowed to be protective.

Lex and Brooklyn left the tower and took to the skies. They glided around a little bit before they landed on a rooftop to begin their patrol. Since they couldn't exactly walk the streets the same way that Elisa could, being on the roofs was the next best thing. It was a bit like a game, to try to get on buildings that were low enough so they could see and hear what was going on, but high enough that they wouldn't be seen walking or gliding around. It was annoying sometimes, but it made for an interesting challenge.

After about a half an hour of looking out over the city they heard some angry muttering and a startled shriek that was soon cut off. It was coming from the alleyway next to the building they were sitting on. Brooklyn and Lexington peered over the side of the building and they saw a guy aiming what looked like a gun at a young couple, who were reaching into their pockets. A classic example of a mugging.

Lex smirked as he looked at Brooklyn. "Well, we wanted something interesting to happen,"

"Humans threatening each other wasn't exactly what I had in mind," Brooklyn said. His eyes began to glow. He didn't know what he'd been expecting when they'd come out here, but he always hated to see humans trying to hurt each other. It made it really hard to listen to Goliath and give humans the benefit of the doubt. Seeing things like this could make it very tempting to listen to Demona. A lot of her methods took things too far, but Brooklyn had to admit that he agreed with some of her philosophies. Not all of them, but some.

Brooklyn and Lex jumped off the roof and landed between the mugger and the couple. Lex lunged towards the mugger and quickly snatched the gun out of his hand. He seemed to have things covered, so Brooklyn turned his attention to the mugger's victims. They were understandably freaked out, and that was the last thing that Brooklyn wanted. In his experience, people, humans, gargoyles, and the children of Oberon alike, lashed out when they were scared. Brooklyn was in a bad enough mood tonight, he didn't need to be attacked by humans on top of everything else.

"Hey, it's okay," Brooklyn said gently. He crossed his wings across his shoulders to make himself look smaller and hopefully less intimidating. "I'm not going to hurt you," His reassurance didn't seem to do anything to calm down the young couple, who looked as terrified as before. "Me and my friend are just here to help," He took a slow step towards the couple, but that seemed to be a step too far.

"St-stay back," The young man stepped protectively in front of the woman and retreated back. "Just leave us alone you...you _monster_ ," Brooklyn grimaced at the name and folded in on himself slightly. He hated being called a monster. It was a little understandable when humans had seen for themselves just what gargoyles were capable of, because they could look rather scary when they fought. Humans like this though, people who had no reason to believe he was a threat, it hurt to know they were scared of him. Especially when all he'd done was save the humans. He didn't deserve to be called a monster, he knew he didn't, but there wasn't much he could do about it.

"Hey, Brooklyn," Lex called out to him. "Can you give me a hand with this guy?" Lex didn't sound completely urgent and in trouble, so Brooklyn didn't think he was in any real danger, but he turned to help. He wasn't getting very far at calming down the victims anyways.

It turned out that all Lex needed help with was moving the mugger, who he'd knocked out. If Goliath or Hudson were here, they would have intimidated him into turning himself in. Lexington was too small to pull off that kind of intimidation, and Brooklyn really didn't want to try to make a human be afraid of him.

They didn't want to just let the human go free though, so what they usually did at times like this was they dragged the guy to the police station with a note taped to his chest. The guys they brought in weren't always convicted, but Elisa did her best to make sure they served time as much as they might have if the cops had caught them.

Brooklyn pulled the mugger a little further into the alley, where they would have less chance of being seen by people passing by. Lex in the meantime turned towards the victims, who had been trying to sneak away while the gargoyles were distracted.

"Hey, do you guys have a pen or paper on you?" Lex asked casually, like it was a completely normal thing that they always asked for. He reached out towards the humans, and they panicked.

"Stay back!" The man reached into his back pocket and pulled out a small pocket knife. "I'm warning you,"

Brooklyn growled and his eyes went white. "Leave him alone!" He stalked towards them, which only seemed to frighten the couple more.

Lex glanced back at him. "Brooklyn, don't," His tone was warning, but not unkind. None of them wanted trouble. It was a mistake for Lexington to take his eyes away from the couple in front of him at such a sensitive moment. The young man tensed and swung his knife.

"No!" Brooklyn grabbed Lex's shoulders and pulled him back. Brooklyn instinctively brought his wings in front of him to shield them, but it didn't do any good. Brooklyn shrieked in pain when he felt the knife cut through his wing. He tried to pull his wings inward, but the smallest movement made his wing flare up and feel like it was being cut all over again, but with a knife that was on fire.

"Brooklyn!" Lex looked at him in horror. His fear was quickly replaced with anger as he glared at the couple. "You, why would you do that?!" As much as Lex couldn't pull off looking intimidating, he could sound pretty terrifying when he really wanted to. "We were just trying to help you!"

"I-" The humans stepped back in fear. Brooklyn clenched his teeth, partially from pain and partially because he didn't want to hear any more excuses from the humans. He just didn't want to deal with it.

"Just get out of here," Brooklyn growled. He didn't even try to hide the pain and anger in his voice. He didn't care if the humans knew how he was feeling. He just wanted them to go away.

The couple wasted no time in fleeing. Lex growled and moved to bound towards the humans, likely to threaten them more, but he stopped himself and turned his attention to Brooklyn. "Are you okay?" Lex gently touched the cut, but drew back when Brooklyn hissed and flinched in pain. "Aw man, that doesn't look very good,"

Brooklyn tried to slowly pull his wings in, but they flared up again. Lex put a hand on his arm. "No, don't move," Lex said. "We don't want to make it worse," Lex sounded scared, which worried Brooklyn more than anything. Lex may be small, but he was incredibly brave. For him to sound so worried told him that this wasn't just a little scratch.

"How bad is it?" Brooklyn asked. He had kept his eyes shut tight to try to block out the pain, and also to avoid confronting the truth. He knew that gargoyles could heal from most anything while they were stone, but they weren't invincible. If an injury was bad enough, it might never heal fully, like Hudson's eye. Brooklyn didn't think the cut was that long, but wings could be extremely vulnerable, because of how thin they were.

"Uh...it's not pretty," Lex said. Brooklyn reluctantly opened his eyes and the very first thing he noticed was that there was a hole in his wings. The cut was larger than he thought, about six inches, but what really scared him was that he could look straight through the hole in his wings. That wasn't normal. Brooklyn felt like he was going to be sick.

"That's...not good," Brooklyn said shakily. A hollow, empty feeling began to build up inside him. It was more intense than the pain from the cut itself.

"I'm sure it'll heal after dawn," Lex tried to reassure him, but he didn't sound like he believed it himself. "But, uh, maybe we should have Hudson take a look," They hadn't been out for that long, but Brooklyn had no problem with going home early.

"Yeah, probably," Brooklyn said. He looked back towards the unconscious mugger. "What about him?"

Lex hummed to himself thoughtfully. "There's no way you can glide by yourself like this, and I can't carry both of you to the police station, but we can't just leave him here,"

"Why not?" Brooklyn asked stiffly. He hadn't planned to say it, but he found that he completely meant it. This mugger would probably end up on the streets without even spending a night in a cell. If there was one thing that Brooklyn had learned from Elisa, it was that the justice system was screwed up.

Lex frowned, obviously unhappy, but he didn't scold or argue with him, which Brooklyn appreciated. "I can just come back for this guy later," They both knew that the mugger would probably be gone by the time anyone else got here, but neither of them pointed it out. The mugger wasn't their first priority at the moment. Lex jumped onto the wall of the building and dug his claws in. "Let's go,"

Brooklyn grabbed onto the building and began to climb after Lex. His wing hurt with every movement he made, but he pushed past it. When they got to the roof they were both relieved to feel a strong breeze. It would make it easier for them to glide this way. They would probably still struggle with it and have to take frequent breaks along the way, because of the way that Lex's wings were. The last thing they needed was for the wind to be against them.

"Are you ready?" Lex asked quietly, cautiously. "Do you need a minute?"

"It's not going to get better," Brooklyn said. Let's just get it over with." He spread out his unhurt wing, hoping that it would make things at least a little easier. Because Lex couldn't hold onto Brooklyn and hold his wings out at once, Brooklyn held onto him instead. It made things awkward, and Brooklyn was worried that he was too heavy for Lex, but his rookery brother didn't complain. Lex just climbed onto Brooklyn's shoulders, spread his wings out, and caught the breeze, lifting them both into the air.

Brooklyn's wing didn't stop hurting during the trip. In fact, with the wind whipping at the cut, pulling it apart more, Brooklyn was sure that the pain had gotten worse. The emptiness in his chest had gotten worse too, peaking when he felt the way that the wind went right through his wing instead of catching onto it.

They weren't too far from the clock tower, but between the slow gliding, frequent breaks, and the need to stop and climb onto higher buildings, it took them the better part of an hour to return home. They couldn't glide straight to the top of the tower, as the wind wouldn't carry them that far. They had to climb the rest of the way.

Brooklyn's arms were shuddering slightly as they climbed. He was sure his arms would give out and he would plummet towards the street, but somehow he was able to find the strength and will to keep climbing. After what felt like far too long, he was finally able to grab the edge of the balcony. Lex grabbed his arm and pulled him up the rest of the way.

"That...that wasn't fun," Lex gasped for breath. He stepped behind Brooklyn to get a look at his wing. He made a small, shocked noise. "I think it got worse,"

"Yeah, I can feel that," Brooklyn's legs finally gave out and he just sat on the ground. His wing, just lying flat on the ground, hurt far more than he'd ever thought a wing could. It wasn't even just the cut that hurt, it was his whole darn wing, which just wasn't fair.

"H-hang on," Lex ran to the door in the clock and pushed it open. "Hudson, we need help out here!"

"Alright, lads, I'm coming," Hudson said. His tone was tired, but a moment later he came rushing through the door. He had heard the urgency in Lex's voice. When Hudson saw Brooklyn on the ground, he made his way over to him.

"Hey, lad," Hudson said. "What's wrong?"

"My wing," Brooklyn said. "They cut it," Hudson gently grabbed Brooklyn's wing and pulled it out slightly so he could get a better look at it. Brooklyn shrieked and tensed. He might have lashed out if Hudson hadn't put a firm hand on his shoulder to keep him down.

"Ay, that's some cut," Hudson muttered to himself. He looked at Lex. "Goliath's in the library with Elisa. We could use their help,"

"Right," Lex nodded and dashed off. Hudson lowered Brooklyn's wing, trying to put it in as comfortable a position as he could get.

"Who did this, lad?" Hudson asked gently. Brooklyn didn't know if Hudson was asking to give him something to talk about and focus on, or if he wanted to know so they could get revenge.

"Don't know them," Brooklyn said. "There was a mugging, but the people we were trying to help, they didn't really appreciate it," Brooklyn clenched his claws into the ground. "Just when I think it's getting better, another human shows up and stabs me in the back," Brooklyn gestured towards his wing. "Literally,"

Hudson sighed. "It's not fair, the hate you lads have to deal with,"

"I'm getting used to it," Brooklyn said. He didn't like it, but he was starting to accept that it wasn't going to get anything better. Humans didn't trust them, and they definitely didn't like them. He had hoped that they would be able to find more human friends besides Elisa, but he wasn't optimistic about it.

"That's the last thing I want," Hudson said. He put a hand on his shoulder and gave it a small squeeze. "You shouldn't have to expect to be hurt," Hudson crouched in front of Brooklyn. "You don't deserve this," Hudson put a hand on Brooklyn's head. Brooklyn couldn't help but lean into Hudson's touch. He hadn't gone looking for physical affection like this since he was a young hatchling. His wing was hurting, he had no idea if it would even be better come tomorrow night, and he wasn't too happy with the humans. He could really use someone to hold on to. Someone who could protect him, cover him, and tell him that everything was going to be okay.

A few minutes later Lex came back with Goliath and Elisa. Brooklyn whined slightly as Hudson stepped out of the way to make room for Goliath. "Don't leave," Brooklyn didn't like how clingy he was, but he couldn't help it. He wanted Hudson to keep him safe.

"I'm not going anywhere, lad," Hudson moved to the side and grabbed Brooklyn's hand. He didn't say a word of complaint when Brooklyn clutched his hand so tightly that he nearly broke the skin.

"Let's get you inside," Goliath pulled Brooklyn to his feet. When Brooklyn faltered slightly, Goliath put an arm under his legs and one on his back. Goliath lifted him up and carried him inside. Hudson stayed right next to him as they went. Inside, Elisa moved some of her stuff off the old mattress in the corner that Bronx used as his bed. Goliath lowered Brooklyn onto the mattress so he was resting on his stomach. Goliath spread Brooklyn's wings out. Brooklyn cried out and tightened his grip on Hudson's hand so much that he probably did pierce the skin.

Bronx whined and backed up slightly. He didn't seem happy about the pain that Brooklyn was going through. Brooklyn couldn't blame him. He wasn't so happy about it either.

"Hey, Lex, why don't you take Bronx for a walk?" Brooklyn suggested as he leaned his head against the mattress. He didn't want to upset Bronx, and he didn't want to humiliate himself further in front of Lex. It was one thing to show weakness in front of Goliath and Hudson, they still saw him as a child, but to be vulnerable with Lex or Broadway, his rookery brothers, it was the last thing he wanted. How was he supposed to expect them to respect him as a brother, let alone as their second in command, if he started bawling because he was scared of a little scratch?

Lex looked really hesitant, but a stern look from Goliath sent him on his way. The moment Lex was out of the room, Brooklyn tensed and tried to mentally prepare himself for what he was about to ask. "This cut, it will heal while I'm stone, won't it?" Brooklyn looked at Hudson, or more specifically at the scar across Hudson's eye.

Hudson sighed. "The pain will go away. As for the wing itself, I don't know. Only dawn will tell,"

Brooklyn shuddered. He hadn't been this scared of what the dawn would bring since he was young and had broken his arm for the first time. No matter how many times he was told that being stone would heal it, he had been absolutely terrified. Deep down Brooklyn had known that his guardians wouldn't deceive him. He had known that he would be okay, he just hadn't felt it. Now, he was getting that feeling all over again, except he didn't even have the knowledge in the back of his head to calm him.

"What if it doesn't get better?" Brooklyn asked. "I wouldn't be able to glide anymore."

"Gliding isn't what makes you a gargoyle or a warrior," Goliath said fiercely. Brooklyn knew what he said was true, but it was a little hard to hear. "Nothing would change," That part was a little less true, and Brooklyn wasn't the only one who knew it.

"Don't make the lad promises you can't keep," Hudson scolded slightly, though his tone wasn't without sympathy. "If Brooklyn can't glide, many things would have to change,"

Goliath growled and turned towards Hudson almost aggressively, but Elisa grabbed his arm to calm him. "Hang on, Goliath, change doesn't have to be a bad thing," She pulled Goliath back to give Hudson a little more room to spread out Brooklyn's wings. "You remember when I got shot?"

Goliath sighed the way he did when he was trying to keep himself from losing his temper. "Yes,"

"I could have easily gotten hurt bad enough that I wouldn't ever recover enough to go back on duty." Elisa said calmly. "I would have had to retire, but do you think that would stop me from helping people?"

"...No," Goliath said unhappily. He knew that Elisa was right, but he didn't want to think about it. A part of Brooklyn didn't want to think about it either. He didn't want to think about what kind of adjustments he might have to make in his life if he didn't heal, because that would be like admitting that not healing was a big possibility. On the other hand, Brooklyn was terrified of not knowing what to expect. If they had a game plan for if the worst happened, maybe he wouldn't be so scared.

"My friend Jeffrey Robbins is blind," Hudson said. "He can't see, but he still found a way to read and write books. If you are unable to glide, we shall not rest until we find a way for you to get around."

For the first time since he'd been cut, Brooklyn grinned. He felt a little better. Not good enough to let go of Hudson's hand, but he wasn't dreading the worst nearly as much.

Elisa looked at Brooklyn for a moment, a thoughtful expression on her face. "I thought that any injury you guys got healed during the day,"

"This cut is complicated," Hudson said. "There's a hole in the wing. When we turn to stone, that hole will still be there."

Elisa gave Brooklyn a small, hopeful smile that made him think that she might have a plan. "You know, sometimes when humans get cut, we force the wounds closed to encourage the skin to heal. Maybe we can do the same thing here,"

Brooklyn barely dared to breath as Hudson and Goliath considered Elisa's suggestion. They looked at each other and seemed to have a silent conversation. After a long moment Goliath nodded and crossed his arms. "Possibly,"

"I might be able to find some bandages," Elisa said quickly. She shared a look with Hudson and began to pull Goliath towards the stairs. "Come on, big guy" Brooklyn didn't know why Elisa was bringing Goliath with her. It wasn't like she would need his help with something like this. He didn't question her though. This was probably just one of those moments where Elisa wanted to be alone with Goliath, no matter what they were doing. She just really seemed to enjoy his private company.

Once Elisa and Goliath were gone, Hudson sighed and sat down on the edge of the mattress next to Brooklyn. He was still holding his hand. Brooklyn was willing to let go of Hudson's hand if he really wanted him to, but Hudson didn't make any move to pull away.

"I don't want to scare you, lad, but I don't want you to get your hopes up," Hudson said. "Elisa's idea may work, but it's not a guarantee,"

Brooklyn grimaced. He rested his free arm under his head. "Yeah, I know," He clenched the claws of his free hand around the mattress. "A guy can dream though, can't he?"

Hudson smiled and gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. "Dream all you want. I just want you to be realistic as well."

"Trust me, I'm not going to forget about just what might happen to me," Brooklyn said. He swallowed thickly. "Hey, Hudson?"

"Ay, lad?" Hudson looked ready to address any concerns that Brooklyn had.

"How did you do it?" Brooklyn asked. "I mean, stepping down as leader after you were hurt,"

"I was thinking of stepping down already," Hudson said. "I was getting old. My injury was just another reminder that I wasn't as strong as I used to be." Hudson looked at Brooklyn. "But this isn't about stepping down as leader, is it?"

Brooklyn sighed and hunched his shoulders slightly, flinching when it caused his wings to shift. "...No,"

Hudson leaned back slightly. "For a long time, I saw my injury as a sign that I couldn't be a good protector, and you know how I feel about gargoyles being protectors,"

Brooklyn nodded. They'd all heard Hudson say things about how guardians were born to guard and protect. It got a little old to listen to sometimes, but Brooklyn had always admired his passion and determination. Sometimes Brooklyn wished he had that same passion. He cared a lot about protecting his friends and those that he cared about, but when it came to total strangers and people in general, it sometimes got really hard to give everything he had to protect them.

"I admit, sometimes I still feel that way," Hudson said quietly. He fiddled with his dagger slightly. "Many days feel like a battle that you know you can never win, but gargoyles are fighters. We never give up, no matter how hopeless the fight,"

"You guys will help me though, right?" Brooklyn asked. He tried to keep his tone casual, but his voice shook. He was really scared of what tomorrow, and potentially every single day for the rest of his life, might bring.

"Always, lad," Hudson let go of his dagger and put his free hand on Brooklyn's head. He stroked his hair slightly. "Always," Brooklyn sighed and felt all of the tension leave his body. The last person who had stroked his hair like this had been Demona, years and years ago when a very young Brooklyn, not even ten years old, had his first truly horrible experience with humans.

Back then, they had to deal with constant hatred and fear from the humans they were protecting. Many of the humans were especially harsh towards Brooklyn. He had done his best to not provoke the humans, but their superstitions caused them to be afraid of him anyways. Because of his leathery wings, red skin, and horns, many humans called him diabhal or devil. He could have been the kindest gargoyle in the world, but humans who held Christian beliefs would find any reason to despise him.

One night a visiting priest had laid eyes on him, and the man had immediately tried to exorcise him. It hadn't physically hurt Brooklyn to be splashed with water that the priest had blessed, but it had terrified him so much that he still had nightmares about it. Brooklyn had been relieved that Demona had jumped in and chased away the priest before he could try any other exorcising methods.

Demona had spent the entire night at Brooklyn's side, holding him close and sheltering him with her wings. She had stroked his hair and whispered soothing reassurances to him. Brooklyn really missed that Demona. He knew that if something like that had happened today, Demona would have focused more on taking revenge on the priest than comforting Brooklyn. It hurt a little bit to think about.

Brooklyn thought that Hudson stroking his hair would bring up too many unpleasant memories about the way that Demona used to be, and how humans had always thought the worst of him, but that didn't happen. Brooklyn felt nothing but comforted. Just like he had known all those years ago that Demona wouldn't let the priest hurt him, he knew that Hudson would do everything he could to keep him safe.

Brooklyn closed his eyes, loosening his grip on Hudson's hand ever so slightly, but not letting go of him. He smiled contently when Hudson began to talk to him about the old days in Scotland, the days before Brooklyn, or even Goliath, had been around. It was strange to hear about just how much things had changed since Hudson was young, but also just how similar things had been back then. It seemed like some things never changed.

At some point, Elisa and Goliath came back. Elisa began to use the bandages she had found to adhere the cut closed. It stung to have someone touch the knife wound, but because Brooklyn was already really relaxed, and Hudson was still talking about the past, it was a lot easier to bear than Brooklyn thought it would be. In just a minute, Elisa finished up with his wing and Brooklyn began to doze off. Most gargoyles didn't rest or nap during the night, not unless they were sick or small children, but Brooklyn was ready for the night and his pain to end.

Hudson's voice was incredibly soothing. It was easy to relax while listening to him, and it served as a good distraction to his own fears. It was easy to avoid thinking about what his future could be like when he was so focused on listening to stories about Hudson's past. Eventually, Brooklyn fell asleep, still holding on to Hudson's hand like it was a lifeline.

**Author's Note:**

> Writing this story was just weird. I had a completely different story in mind, but as I got to writing, it just got away from me. I'm still going to write the other story, but this story seemed to work so well on its own that I decided that while these stories are connected, they're not nearly so connected that I would want it to be two chapters of the same story. So I decided to have them be part of the same series instead. I'll write the original story sometime later.
> 
> Writing this also reminded me how much I love Hudson. He's great.


End file.
